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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

 

 

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: Mercy Benson <mbenson009@hotmail.fr>
Reply-To: <mercybenson_2@myway.com>
Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2008 19:01:15 +0100
Subject: From: Mercy Benson



From: Mercy BensonAvenue 35 Rue 20 Treichville,Abidjan Cote D'Ivoire.(Old Ivory Cost) Dearest One, Compliments of the day.How are you, your business and family? I hope all is well.I decided to communicate with you about my present condition with my only junior brother.I am Mercy Benson daughter of the late ENGR. FERICOH BENSON of Free town Sierra Leone with my brother Peter.I am a young brother from the family of two because my beloved mother died on the day my younger brother was delivered and my father refused to re-marry immediately because he is the only child of his parents and don't want anybody that will maltreat us due to the love he has for us. My late father Engr.Fericoh Benson was the Managing Director (MD) of BETAX PLC a Gold and Diamond Mining corporation company. During the time of his service he was a very devoted and God fearing person. This cause his fellow staff to hate him because he always refuseto collaborate with them in doing evil. So one evening october 2004 when I was coming back with my dad from shopping in his own private car we ran into bandits(hired assasins) who were totally armed they trace us till we reach home.There they attacked us, my father pleaded with them to take everything he has and spare his life. They took everything and also shot him three times on his chest and left with a word saying( That they were hired to kill him) My father died in cold blood. We have ran out of that our old residence and living now with our church servant of God for security and sipiritual upliftment immediately after the burial of my father.The problem we are facing is that my father's business wicked staffs is hunting for us to kill so as to eliminate any thing concerning our father.Our unclewhom we thought that could help us carry on with life, turned to show us the worst part of life by taking all our valuable prperties including cash money,landed prperties and my father's car living us with nothing with an open confession that he will kill us if found that we still have any other thing remaining mostly money.The only hope for me and my junior brother to live and continue our eduction lies on you to help us come in as my late father's foreign business to work with a bank here where my father made a fixed/suspense deposit of US$12.5M with my name as the next of kin.When I went to the bank here with the deposit documents which my late father gave me for confirmation and to see if they can give us money from it.The bank officer presicly told me that is true that I'm the next of kin but the deposit clause and the nature of the deposit doesn't warrant them withdrawingany money from it until is transferred to a foreign account of his business partner which was exactly what my father told me before he took his last breath.Please I'm on my knees appealing that you help me out of this problem to have this fund transferred to your account after which I and my brother will have our way to your country to spend all our live,continue our education while you invest part of the money for us inprofit yelding venture.To appreciate this your concern and help to us, we have decided to thank you with 25% of this whole fund as your benefit.Then you have extra 5% to replace any expenses,finacially and materially and whatever it will cost you making this dream a success so as to make all what you receive 30%.Please help us as we don't have any other hope than on you and with everybelieve you will not disappoint or deny us this our last hope.The most important thing again is for you to assure me of the maximum confidentiality of this until the end of this fund transfer to your account because of security wise. If you can help us please let me know as I am waiting to hear from you soon. Thanks and remain bless, Mercy Benson.
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